Flora of New Zealand Series

H. populnea var. angustifolia (Raoul) Hook. f. Fl. N.Z. 1, 1852, 30.

Type locality: "Akaroa, in locis umbrosis". Type: P, Raoul. A portion is in K.

Slender tree up to ± 10 m. tall, glab. or nearly so, except young parts and infl. Juvenile plant a small bushy shrub with very slender flexible ± interlacing branchlets; lvs rather distant, often fascicled, on very slender petioles, ± 1-2 mm. long; lamina (2)-4-8 × 4-7 mm., broad-obovate to suborbicular, cuneately narrowed to base, dentate along upper margin. Adult with lvs on petioles ± 5 mm. long; lamina (including teeth) ± 2-3 × 0·5-1 cm.; narrow, obovate to oblanceolate to oblong to lanceolate, obtuse to acute; coarsely rather distantly spinulose dentate-serrate; teeth up to ± 2 mm. long. The different lf-forms may all occur on the same plant. Fls solitary or occ. in 2-5-fld cymose fascicles on very slender stellate-pubescent pedicels ± 10 mm. long. Calyx densely pubescent, campanulate, c. 3 mm. long, (3)-5-fid; teeth broad-triangular. Petals ± 7 mm. long, white, obliquely narrow-oblong, notched. Stigma capitate. Anthers reniform. Carpels and styles 5. Mature carpels ± 8 mm. long, including very broad wing.

DIST.: N., S. Lowland forests, especially marginal, sts forming groves, from lat. 39° southwards.

FL. 12-3. FT. 2-4.

Raoul's plate (Choix, 1846, t. 26) excellently shows the common South Island form of this somewhat polymorphic and highly heteroblastic sp. Kirk (Stud. Fl. 1899, 72) thus describes his var. acutifolia : "Leaves on mature plants usually soft, linear-lanceolate, accuminate, 1 in.-11/2 in. long, with strong spinulose teeth; petioles very short. Pedicels very slender.-T. Kirk, Forest Fl. N.Z. t. 55, f. 1 and 2." Fig. 1 shows a flowering branch with all the lvs acute to acuminate; fig. 2 shows a branched piece with juvenile lvs.